What You Goin' To Do When the Rent Comes ""'Round? (Rufus Rastas Johnson Brown)/ music by Harry von Tilzer; words by Andrew B. Sterling

Lyrics:First verseWho dat a knockin' at the door below, Who dat a shiv'rin' in the hail and snow, I can hear you grumblin' Mister Rufus Brown, Just keep on a knockin' babe, I won't come down, I wants to tell you that you can't get in, Have you been a gamblin' Honey, did you win? what's that you tell me coon you lost your breath? I hopes you freezes to death.ChorusRufus Rastus Johnson Brown, what you goin' to do when the rent comes ‘round, What you goin' to say, how you goin' to pay, You'll never have a bit of sense till judgement day; You know, I know, rent means dough, Landlord's goin' to put us out in the snow, Rufus Rastus Johnson Brown, what you goin' to do when the rent comes ‘round. Rufus Rastus Johnson Brown, what you goin' to do when the rent comes ‘round, What you goin' to say, how you goin' to pay, You'll never have a bit of sense till judgement day; You know, I know, rent means dough, Landlord's goin' to put us out in the snow, Rufus Rastus Johnson Brown, what you goin’ to do when the rent comes ‘round.
Second verseKeep on a bangin’ on the old front door, In just a minute babe you’ll hear me snore, If I goes to bed without a bite or sup, You will be an icicle when I wakes up, Where’s all the money that you said you’d bring, Melted all away just like the snow last Spring, Rufus I loves you, but this serves you right, Guess that’s sufficient, “goodnight.”
(Chorus)

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The derogatory terms, images, and ideas that appear in some of this sheet music are not condoned by the University of Mississippi. They do represent the attitudes of a number of Americans at the times the songs were published. As such, it is hoped that the sheet music in this collection can aid students of music, history, and other disciplines to better understand popular American music and racial stereotypes from the 19th- and early 20th-centuries. Read the introduction for further information to use when contextualizing this item: http://130.74.92.141/cdm4/intro_harris.php